The beginning of Forever
by foreverbeautiful-luv
Summary: Starting from the moment Patch and Nora see each other again after the war. (Summary sucks but I promise the story is good.)
1. Chapter 1

**_Patch_**

I stood hunched over the decaying bodies that lay strewn around the cemetery and cursed in a fervent, hurried way. The words caught on the tip of my tongue, over and over again. I felt nothing but a fresh wave of panic in my chest, making me sick with fear.

I'd gone to hell and back to be with her but now she was nowhere to be seen. Even when I tried to push away the most terrifying thoughts that crept inside my mind and haunted me, I couldn't stop them all. _She was gone...she was gone..._

_No. No. No. No. No._

I wasn't going to give up on her, I had to find her.

Running through the tomb stones and the grass that was slick with pure red and tainted blue blood I braved the images of the lifeless body of Nora Grey that was waiting in my head. Tears sprung to my eyes and I bent at each body I saw, inspecting them. Would she be one of the lifeless, decaying bodies I found in the matted down grass? No. She couldn't be gone. Not my angel.

"Patch?" Nora said. Her voice was the same, beautiful and melodic as it had always been. Airy and husky. Two great contrasts that only she held. Another reason why I loved her so much. Another reason why she was beautiful.

I froze.

My heart beat wildly in my chest and I thought I might possibly in another kind of hell. The kind of hell where I could hear nothing but her voice and not be able to touch her for the rest of eternity. Her ghost. But that couldn't stop me from turning around.

_Nora._

_Oh, Angel..._

Her gray eyes, her curling red hair, her flushed skin...her.

There's dirt all over and a cut on her cheek bone and her jeans are ripped apart beyond repair and her hair is tangled and windblown but she is all and everything I'll ever need to see.

My Angel...

She ran towards me and threw herself into my arms. Her fingers dug into my shirt and her face buried in my neck. She shook so hard that I thought she might fall apart with the rest of the decaying bodies and the world around us. "Let this be real. Let this be you. Don't let me go. Don't ever let me go." She cried and she inhaled, as if she didn't need air. As if she just wanted to breathe me. "I fought Dante. I killed him. But I couldn't save Scott. He's dead. Devilcraft is gone, but I failed Scott."

I murmured softly in her ears and held onto her like a lifeline, afraid that letting her go would be like letting go of my own soul. I guided her to sit with me on the bench, never letting go.

"I saw Rixon."

"He's dead," I told her. "So are the rest of them. Dante released us from hell, but not before taking our oaths of loyalty and injecting us with a devilcraft prototype. It was the only way out. We left hell with it swimming in our veins, our lifeblood. When you destroyed devilcraft, every fallen angel being sustained by it died." The world was so quiet between the two of us that I could hear her heart beating loudly and hear the sharpness of her breath.

"How did you survive?"

"I didn't swear an oath to Dante and I didn't let him inject me with devilcraft. I possessed Rixon just long enough to escape hell. I didn't trust Dante or devilcraft. I trusted you to finish them both off."

"Oh, Patch," her voice shook and trembled and she climbed onto my lap, snuggling closer to me and sobbed into my chest. "You were gone. I saw your motorcycle. You never came back. I thought-" her voice broke. "When I didn't save your feather-" She pulled me closer and I rocked her gently in my arms, never letting her go for a second. _Angel, _I murmured softly into her mind. _I'm right here. We're together. It's over, and we have each other._

She stared into my eyes and I saw all of the love and grief that she had felt in the passing hours. She wiped her eyes with the sleeves of her shirt and pushed herself to her knees, moving to straddle my hips. Her fingers combed through my hair, locking my curls between her fingers, drawing me closer to her. "I want to be with you," She said, her voice husky with a deep, impending desire I had never seen before. Only then did I understand how wrong I had been about loving her more than she loved me. She loved me equally, with a passion that I had only wished for before. Until now. "I need you close, Patch. I need all of you."

Then she kissed me.

Our mouths crush together, forceful and needy pressure. My hands tightened around her back, pulling her closer.

Her hands mapped me out; she ran her hands over me. My thighs, my shoulders, my arms, my hands, my fingers. She never stopped touching me and I didn't want her too. She was so beautiful and strong and fierce and alive. I was never going to let her go again, not ever.

"I want to wake up with you every morning and wake up beside you every night," I told her, my voice rough with emotion. "I want to take care of you, cherish you, and love you in a way no other man ever could. I want to spoil you -every kiss, every touch, every thought, they all belong to you. I'll make you happy. Every day I'll make you happy." Her eyes flickered with surprise as I pulled the ring from the pocket in my jeans and held it up for her to see. Her eyes caught mine and I wanted to kiss her so badly. "I found this ring shortly after I was banished from heaven. kept it to remind myself of how endless my sentence was, how eternal one small choice can be. I've kept it a long time. I want you to have it. You broke my suffering. You've given me a new eternity. Be my girl, Nora. Be my everything."

"Patch," She whispered, softly.

I scraped the rough edge of the ring on the palm of my hand. A thin trail of blood rose on my hand and I looked into her eyes, more sure of what I was going to do then anything else I'd ever done before. "I swear to you, Nora Grey, on this day, from now and forever, to give myself to you. I am yours. My love, my body, my soul -I place in your possession and protection."

I held out the ring to her, "Patch," she whispered softly, her voice all air and beauty.

"If I fail my covenant, my own misery and regret will be my endless punishment." My eyes met hers with an unfaltering certainty. _I won't fail you, Angel. I won't fail you._

She took the ring and I saw that her eyes shone with tears of joy. She looked like she was about to scrape her palm but then she brought the ring higher so that it was at the mark on her wrist and she slashed her Nephilim heritage mark on the inside of her wrist.

Her incision fit with mine and she looked into my eyes with only one emotion. Love.

"I swear to you, Patch, to take your love and cherish it. And in return to give you my body and my heart -everything I possess, I give to you. I am yours. Wholly and completely. Love me. Protect me. Fulfill me. And I promise to do the same."

I pushed the ring onto her finger.

I jerked back and saw the confusion in Nora's eyes. "My hand," I said, my voice low. "My hand is-" I stared deep into her eyes with confusion. "My hand is tingling where you mixed our blood."

"You feel it," She said, shakily.

I stared for a moment longer and saw the hopefulness in her eyes and felt it flicker on the inside.

The sound I made was a trap between a groan and a laugh. I could touch her. I could feel her. "I feel you." I ran my hands over her, running my hands up and down her arms and over her skin. She felt so...so...warm. Yes, warm. I caught her face between my hands and kissed her hard on the mouth. I felt myself shudder with pleasure.

I gathered her up in my arms and heard her let out a sound of pure joy. "Let's get out of here," I murmured, at last, breathing against her soft skin. I felt her body and her love and her warmth and everything I had ever wanted. Nora was everything to me. Everything I could ever want, everything I would ever need. I could never ask for more.

Her eyes lit with a deep desire and she wrapped her arms around my neck and let her head rest on the curve of my shoulder.

My fingers idly played with the curling ringlets of her red hair and gently kissed the curve of her neck. "I love you," I whispered against her skin. She moved in my arms to look in my eyes.

"Love you back." She pulled me to my feet to stand with her and she looked into my eyes. I saw the desire so clearly in her eyes. She kissed me gently on the mouth and when she pulled back I watched her pull her sweater over her head and she was left in nothing but a spaghetti top and jeans.

"Are you sure?" I whispered against her skin.

By way of answer she kissed me on the mouth, hard and I pulled her against me. My fingers threaded in her hair and I kissed her deeply and I pushed her up against the wall, drowning in her taste.

I slid my shirt over my head and let it fall to the floor as I pulled Nora into my arm. She wrapped her legs around my waist and kissed me hard as I helped pull her top over her head and she was left in a dark bra. I stopped, relishing in her beauty that I had already known was there.

"You're so beautiful," I whispered against her skin and I felt her lips pressing against my skin, running up my collar bone and my shoulder.

"I love you," She said, her voice husky..

And there was nothing left to do but kiss her and kiss her until I forgot about the rest of the world.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Nora**_

Patch held himself above me with a heaving chest and pirate eyes, keeping himself from crushing me under his weight. He kissed me so deeply and so urgently that I thought my heart might explode.

My body, almost on command by his touch, became warm and pliant to his touch. My leg, curling around his waist as I traded places with him, sliding on top of him and kissing him until I became numb to all of the disturbing images of Dante and Scott and the rest of the world and the war that had raged just hours before.

My fingers threaded with his dark curls and he steeled up my hair in his hands -kissing my neck with fervent urgency and passion.

His body made mine melt in places I didn't know existed. I fell against him and closed my eyes as he kissed my collar bone and slid my body under the silk sheets in his bed.

When he was done, I felt him fall against me and I tangled my fingers in his air and felt him pull me into his arms one last time before I gave way to sleep.

When I opened my eyes again, I was met with the stare of Patch's dark eyes. He was watching me intensely and his fingers were in my hair, playing with locks of red hair. His fingers were intertwined with mine and he left kisses down my arm, softly sucking on my skin.

I leaned toward him and kissed his collar bone softly and slid my arms around him.

_Angel, _he said to my mind.

_Patch._

He smiled and pulled me upward, to sit on his lap and he kissed me hard and needy. And I needed him just as much. We were tied together by an invisible force that we couldn't control and I didn't want too. I didn't want to have control. I wanted to be wild and awake and alive. I loved him and he loved me and that was all that mattered to me.

I don't know when we decided that it was okay for us to get out of bed that morning -it must have been hours later -but Patch stood up suddenly, pulling me up with him, wrapping us together in sheets as he held me against his chest and kissed my neck. "Do you want to take a shower?" _With me... _He said the last words almost as an afterthought.

I didn't need to look into his desire filled eyes to know what he meant. I also knew that I didn't need to think too hard about my answer.

Patch lifted me from where I stood and kissed my neck with a bruising pressure as he slid his hand across the wall, reaching for the shower faucet.

The sheets wrapped around the both of us fell and Patch backed me into the shower and his lips blocked out the rest of the world until there was nothing left but us. Until I didn't know where I began and he ended.

I tasted his skin and ran my fingers through his matted down curls and bathed with him in the water.

"What are you doing?" I asked, breathless, when he poured soap into his hands and ran his fingers through my hair.

He looked down at me with pure desire and I felt him smile when he said, "Washing you."

I moved against him like a sun flower moves toward the sun, my body, warm and pliant with his as I kissed his shoulder blades and left soft kisses down his arms.

He left kisses down the side of my throat and gently left kisses on my collar bone and I let him just hold me there -like that -until the water became cold and freezing and his body was all that was left to warm me. I let him keep me warm and safe in his arms.

"Vee," I said softly, almost unsure of what to say to my best friend. Vee was the girl who stood by me and never gave up on me and when she was afraid -she stood and took on her fear anyways. But in that moment, my heart broke in all of the places I didn't even know existed.

She stared at me with those bright blue eyes and I thought I just might shatter into a million pieces. "Where's Scott?"

I nearly choked on my tears.

"Where's Scott, Nora?" She demanded, louder this time. "Where is he?" Her voice was high with panic.

"He saved my life, Vee-" But Vee didn't care, she didn't want to hear it.

"No. Do not say it, Nora. Do not say it. He is not-" Her voice cracked. "He is not-"

"He's dead Vee. He's dead."

I felt Vee slump against me in defeat and I felt her body trembling against me, fighting off the tears. _How did it happen? _Vee whispered to my mind. _Who killed him?_

_Dante._

_That sick bastard, _Vee seethed.

I shook my head and wiped tears from my eyes and looked at Patch who was sitting on the other side of me with his arms resting on my waist. I leaned over and kissed him gently on the cheek.

"Why did Dante have to kill him?" Vee whispered. "He wasn't even in the duel, was he? He was fighting the fallen angels-"

"Because Dante almost killed me. He almost did, Vee. And then Scott came and he tried to kill Dante for me. Then he slipped and-" I looked away, I couldn't finish.

Patch's eyes widened and he looked truly bewildered. I hadn't told him all of the details of the fight. Mostly because I was still replaying the fight, over and over again in my head. I was looking for a way to change it. A way for things to be different. But I knew that if Scott hadn't come -if Scott wouldn't have died, I would be dead and I knew one thing for certain, I could never repay that debt.

Tears flooded my eyes and Patch tightened his grip on my hand.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered.

Vee looked at me. "I'm not okay that he's dead, Nora, but I'm just glad that you aren't. It's just...I can't believe he's really gone..." Vee whispered. I took her hand and gave it a good squeeze. "You think this get's us dismissed from a whole week of school?" Vee said, as if to lighten the mood and make us laugh, but the words came out as a whimper.

Patch took us home and I curled up with him on the couch. "Do you think Vee will be okay?" I asked him softly.

He nodded. "Vee's going to be okay, Nora. You know she will. My only question is, will you be okay?" He ran his fingers through my hair and kissed my jaw with a gentle pressure. "I saw you today at Vee's and when you talked about Scott...I know I never showed much care for him but he was your friend, an I'm sorry. And if I could, I would thank him for saving my girl for me."

I leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. "I'll be fine, Patch."

"Angel-"

But he never finished what he was going to say because I was interrupted with the voice of Lisa Martin. "Nora Grey, I had such high hopes for you."

I stood, but Patch was already there, his arm hooked, protectively, around my waist. "What are you doing here?" I demanded.

"The angel. He's supposed to be dead. Have you been conspiring with this boy all along?" Lisa demanded.

Absent mindedly I reached for Patch's hand and I felt him tense under the eyes of the nephilim who was watching us. His fingers twined with mine and I felt his arm tighten around my waist. "What do you want with Nora?" Patch asked, warily.

"Don't talk to me, angel!" Lisa hissed at him. "You are the Blackhand's daughter, Nora Grey, yet you continue to degrade yourself with these...with this...thing. You are destroying his name with this...ridiculousness."

"What do you want with us," I demanded, my eyes cold.

Patch pulled me even closer to him and I felt him preparing for the fight. _What ever you do, _Patch whispered, _don't get yourself killed. I just got you back. I won't lose you again._

I squeezed his hand. _You won't lose me._

_I better the hell not._

"I'm taking the angel with me. He's a danger to humans and nephilim and you're being selfish by keeping him here with you. We need to keep him away from the rest of the world," she hissed. "He's nothing but darkness."

"Then let me be selfish," I hissed. My eyes scanned the room for a weapon.

"Don't go down that road, Nora, I brought backup."

Then the door swung open.


	3. Chapter 3

**_Patch_**

I gripped Nora's hand tightly and my arm snaked around her waist. I wasn't going to lose Nora. Not after being sent to hell and coming back for her. My heart beat loudly in my chest and I could feel her muscles tightening, ready for a fight if she had to be.

"Call off your men, Lisa," Nora said, her voice was hard. "I fulfilled my oath to Hank. It's over now."

"It's not over until I say it's over," Lisa hissed. "Or haven't you learned?"

Nora, without warning, lunged forward and slammed into Lisa. Lisa gripped Nora's wrist and slammed it into the floor.

I didn't waste any time.

I launched myself forward at the other Nephilim. I wasn't going to lose this fight, for the love and peace I felt with Nora –I couldn't.

Nora was thrown into the wall, face first with a sickening sound and forced myself to remember that she could handle herself and not run to her aid. I knew she could take care of herself –she was a strong girl and she was mine. I loved her. But I could never stop feeling that deep protectiveness that made me want to maim Lisa Martin and anyone else who would dare touch my girl.

But Nora was already on her feet.

I turned to the rest of the Nephilim and with a diabolical grin, I fought back.

I slammed one into the hard edge of the table and punched the other in the jaw, sending him reeling in pain.

I spun out –avoiding a close, incoming blow to my head. _Angel, _I said, softly to Nora. _How are you doing over there._

_Ok, _was her answer.

I just wanted to gran her and kiss her and love her until morning came around again and do it all over again. I wanted to taste the sweetness of her skin and kiss her until I couldn't breathe anymore.

So I fought harder.

And then I heard a small gasp and shouted, "Don't touch her. Don't you touch her!"

"No!" I shouted just as I saw Lisa bring her hands to Nora's neck and in one swift movement, snap it.

She fell to the floor.

The Nephilim backed away slowly. "Next time, we take your girlfriend away and you never hear from or see her again. We'll be back."

I wanted to kill Lisa but I also needed to get Nora up from the floor. She would be okay, she was immortal. As I lifted her from the floor, they walked away

Her body stirred and I pulled her gently against my chest and pressed my lips to her ear. She took a breath and curled into my side. "Patch?" She whispered against my skin.

_Angel._

She shot right up and looked around wildly. "Patch."

I wrapped my arms around her and sat her on my lap. "I'm right here, Angel. Right here."

She pressed her face into my shoulder and breathed in a deep breath. "Patch. Patch. Patch." It was simply breathing my name –saying it over and over again. I pulled her even closer and kissed her hair. She was here in my arms and nothing was going to change that. I wasn't letting go –ever again.

"How are you feeling, Angel?" I pressed my face into her hair and breathed the scent of her skin and her hair.

"I've felt better." She looked up at me with an emotion that I had rarely ever seen in her eyes. I'd seen it once and twice before but it reminded me of the day that I'd found her again, that she could remember me again. I had her again, that day. She'd come back to me and she'd loved me even though I'd made her forget. We'd found each other. Even when she couldn't remember her love for me, she felt it. We were tied together forever and nothing was going to change that. But the look in her eyes was something that was as fleeting and as beautiful. Like she were afraid of losing me. And she curled her body gently against mine and whispered against my skin. "I love you." Breathless.

"Angel," I said quietly. "It isn't safe for you to be here with me." It hurt just to say the words and I knew that it tore her apart on the inside too. "They'll come for you and for me and…I can't lose you."

Nora threaded her arms with mine and when I looked into her eyes, I saw nothing but her love and her fear for us. "We could go," she whispered.

I knew what she meant. "Anywhere you want to. I'll go anywhere with you, Nora Grey."

I stared into her eyes and I saw an emotion moving in her gaze. Love –always love.

She threaded her fingers in my curls –locking her fingers in them and she kissed my lips with a gentle longing and I shuddered with pleasure. Nora broke the kiss and whispered softly against my skin, "I love you."

I stood up and pulled her up with me. "Are you hungry? Do want me to make you dinner?" But when I heard her response and the husky sound her voice made when she said "starving" –I knew that eating food was the last thing on her mind.

I pressed her back against the wall and she pulled herself against me and kissed me with a sudden urgency I hadn't noticed before. She was all tongue and teeth and fierce longing and all I could think about was the longing inside my chest when I couldn't find her, when I was lost –and I was so sure that she was dead.

That was the place I would never go back too again.

"Angel," I said roughly, I nipped her ear softly and she sighed against me. I kissed her neck intensely and lifted her up onto the kitchen counter –remembering the first time I had kissed my girl.

I later pulled back and found that we had moved to the dining room and I had her whole body pressed to the dinner table and her cardigan's buttons had been flicked open, all accept one, revealing her flimsy tank top beneath.

My voice was rough and I almost trembled as I spoke. "I love you Nora Grey. No matter where you are and where I am, I will never stop loving you. You are everything to me, do you understand that? Everything."

"Patch." Her fingers slid over my cheek as she softly caressed it. "I'll love you forever, Patch," she whispered, her voice was like air and silky soft. "Always and forever. I promise." She shook underneath me and I saw all of the love in the world in my angel's eyes.

"You're _my_ guardian angel, Nora Grey." I kissed her and she wrapped her legs around my waist as I lifted her from the table, stealing up her hair in my fingers.

Forever and always.

That's what we had, forever and always.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Nora**_

My mother stared at me a long time, as if she were in a catatonic state. Patch didn't move, I didn't move, and she didn't. Everything was especially still.

"Do you love her?" She finally said, turning to Patch. "Do you really love my daughter?" There was something weary about the way she looked at him. And I supposed, I too, would be weary. I'd only just explained to her that Patch was a fallen angel, I was a Nephilim, she had sex with Hank who also happened to be Nephilim and Patch and I were on the run from some really mean and nasty Nephilim who hated Patch and my relationship. She also had just found out that the two of us were sworn together my an oath spoken under heaven –which might as well have been our marriage certificate and also meant that I'd probably not be having a wedding any time soon since our vows had already been said.

She was taking it all in –unreasonably well.

There had been no shouting, no swearing, and my mother hadn't tried to pull a gun on Patch, yet –which seemed like a promising start.

Patch slid his fingers through mine and looked my mother straight in the eye. "Very much, Blythe. I love your daughter more than anything in this world."

Despite the fact that my mother was there, I snuggle closer to him on the couch and rested my head on his shoulder.

_Angel, _He said to me, through my thoughts. _Are you sure about this?_

_Yes, _I replied without any hesitation.

I was sure.

More sure about this than anything else I had ever done in my whole life. I wanted to run away with him and be young and alive and beautiful until our whole world ended. I wanted to know what it was like to have forever and not fear it.

Mom sighed slightly and I realized how much it must hurt her to let me go away and for her to say this as she said, "Make sure you pack your things. Bring anything you need with you."

I felt the burn of regret under my skin and realized for the first time that this was sort of like her blessing. I was going to go away and I didn't know when I'd see her again.

My eyes met Patch's and I knew that he understood what I was going through.

Patch slid his fingers through mine and followed me up the stairs.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" And by way of answer, I slid my arms around his neck and kissed him urgently on the mouth.

"Love you."

I wrapped my arms around my mother and kissed her on the cheek. "I love you, mom." A tear slid down my cheek and with a hurried fervor, I brushed it aside. That was maybe one of the hardest things I had ever done, I realized, as I walked away and drove away into the sunset with Patch.

Patch's kisses melted me in places I didn't know existed and he made the world disappear around us.

It was just the two of us in the small motel and I let him hold me in his arms.

I pressed my face into his solid chest and breathed in the scent of him. Leather. Spice. And…ahh…mint. He warm and real and a solid assurance to be held in his arms.

I'd never known a feeling like this before. That feeling when he was silent and could have been sleeping but he was really just holding to me and listening to my breaths go in and out and my heart beat. The feeling I had now, warmed me and filled me with that love I had for him. I loved every second of this.

I slid my fingers over his chest and felt him shivering with pleasure beneath me. His skin was warm and it made me feel at home.

Patch is my home.

Wherever he is, I belong.

"Mmm…" he said, pressing his face into my neck and his breath tickled my skin.

Patch is my forever now.

"I love you," I whispered against his skin and pressed my lips against his rock hard abs. I slowly moved my lips up his chest and neck and he captured strands of my hair in his fingers.

He slid his fingers through my hair and kissed me urgently, as if I were the oasis in a desert.

And when he pulled back, I felt him look down at me in his arms. I looked back at him, staring into his dark eyes. "If I kiss you, every day, every single second from now and forever, it would never be enough." The words made me melt on the inside. "I don't know what I would have done if Dante had taken you from me."

A sob of anguish caught in my throat. "I…when your feather burned, I never thought I'd see you again. I thought it was all over. I'd never felt more scared or alone in my life. I can't live without you, Patch. I need you. You're my forever."

He made a quiet sound and it resonated all of the emotions I felt right now and it made tears fall soundlessly from my cheeks.

His hands shook where they held me and he used his thumb to wipe away my tears. "I need you too, Angel. And you're my forever."

I kissed him.

Our kiss was something that was bittersweet and longing and delicious. His lips blocked out the rest of the world and his fingers in my hair only made me want him more. But I didn't need to just want him anymore, I had him.

Right here.

When I woke up, Patch's arms were around me and when I moved, his arms only tightened around my waist. It made me feel warm and slippery inside and I curled up beside him.

I just lay there in his arms for the hours that passed, watching him sleep.

"You're staring at me," he said, his eyes weren't even open.

I smiled lightly. "Why? Are you complaining?"

His arms tightened around me. "Never, Angel. Never."

I left small, feather light kisses up his shoulder.

"Do you think we'll ever get out of bed today?" He asked while kissing me.

"No."


	5. Chapter 5

_**Patch**_

There's nothing more beautiful than Nora after a shower when her skin is wet and her eyes are bright and she tastes delicious. And I'm pretty sure there's nothing sexier than Nora tangled in bed sheets, lacking clothing and under garments, with her splayed out around her like a blanket.

Nothing.

Nothing is more beautiful or alluring.

So that's why I felt myself smiling at the steering wheel and through the wind shield.

I pictured Nora in front of me with her clothes off, her hair, wind swept curls, and she moves toward me with a coy smile on her face that delights me even further. I can almost feel her tongue against mine and the softness of her skin. I can feel her breath on my skin and the shape of her mouth and her skin is slick with sweat against my body...

Her fingers in my hair.

Teeth grazing my ear.

Long, wind swept hair.

Arms on my chest.

Fervent lips, tongue, and teeth.

"Patch," Nora whispers to me.

I freed myself from the vision and looked at her. "Mmm..."

"You okay?"

I smiled, the sides of my mouth tipping up as I look at her. "Yeah, Angel. You?"

That snagged a smile.

"I'm starting to think that you're getting spoiled," I stopped her before she could make a good come-back. "And I'll keep spoiling you. I love you, Angel."

She threads her fingers with mine. "Patch -"

Then the crash came and everything turned to black.

My first thought was of Nora.

She wasn't there with me in the empty room and I felt a tug of fear in my chest. "Nora!" _Angel,_ I called out. _Angel!_

She didn't answer.

"Nora isn't going to answer."

Something of a growl escaped my throat and I fought to break the chains on my wrists and the shackles on my ankles. "Where is she? Where is she? If Nora doesn't walk free in the next ten seconds, I will make sure to drown your corpse somewhere where no one will ever find you. I will make sure that -"

"I told you that the next time we came, you wouldn't see Nora again. No one will see Nora ever again." She cackled like a hyena.

I slammed on the chains. "Where the hell is she?" I demanded, shouting in all of the rage. "Where the hell did you take Nora?"

And it was right then that I told myself I would kill her. Anyway I possibly could, I would kill Lisa Martin.

But Lisa did not panic. "I'll take good care of Nora for you. We won't have any problems if she agrees to cooperate with us and if not...who knows what could happen?"

"Let her go!" I shouted. "Let Nora go, you pathetic leech! I'll kill you. I'll make you wish you were never born!" I threw myself forward but was held fast by the chains. "Give her back! Giver her back to me Lisa or -"

"Oh, stop your blubbering threats. They make you look stupid. And I'll let you see her, but only when you show cooperation. You've shown none such thing. So you'll have to go at least another night without her."

"Let me see her," I shouted.

"You see, Patch, we only want one thing. To test on you and your emotions. We need to know what we're going to do when angels are back and want to use us like they have for hundreds of years."

I shook my head. "I'm not negotiating."

"You're not in a position too."

"Where is she?" I demanded. "What have you done with Nora?"

Lisa almost smirked. "That's just the beginning of our testing sessions, angel," she said with a hiss. "I'll take you to her now."

The world went black again.

When I opened my eyes, I saw her. Nora wore a white tank top and tan cargo pants. She looked anxious and worried and her hands were bound so tightly that they were raw, red, and bloody.

"Nora..." My voice was hoarse and scratchy.

"Patch..." My name was barely a whisper on her lips. "Patch, I-"

Lisa cackled and the sound was haunting. "This is only the beginning, demon," she hissed at me and my eyes focused to my surroundings. A nephilim was lifting Nora, fighting, kicking, and screaming, and threw her into the depths of something that looked like a tank of water. He closed the top.

Was it like water-boarding and torture?

"No! Let her go!"

I slammed my body against the nephilim who had a hold on me and fought to reach the tank.

I could see her red curls swirling in the tank as she fought in the water for breath and the white tank top moved below the surface. She was fighting for breath.

"Nora!"

No. No. No. No. No. No.

This could not happen -not now.

"Stop him!" Lisa Martin's voice rang out and my head was simmering with rage.

_Nora,_ I said and there was no response.

The water no longer bubbled or racked against the glass. No splash or fighting. "Nora!"

I slammed myself against the glass and it made a scrape and a crack against the glass. Her body simply lay there, pliant and lifeless in the water. I slammed against it again and knew the truth. The horrible realization was beginning to settle upon me. _She's dead. She's dead._

I didn't save her.

No.

She was immortal. She could not be dead. She just couldn't.

The glass webbed and flew apart.

I rushed forward and caught Nora in my arms before she could fall against the hard concrete floor. "Angel," I whispered, "Angel."

Lisa grabbed my shoulder but I slammed back against her and sent her flying.

I pressed my lips to hers -breathing for her.

1, 2, 3, breathe.

Repeat.

1, 2, 3, breathe.

Repeat.

Again and again.

She was cold and limp in my arms.

Lifeless.

"No. No. No," I said, the words were frantic and I knew that I was tipping dangerously close to the edge. If she didn't wake up... "Nora! Nora!" I shook her slightly and there was no response. "Wake up." I choked on useless tears. "Wake up."

Nothing.

Silence.

"Angel..."

"Why isn't she waking up," Lisa hissed. "This was a test. She was not supposed to die." No one hurried to answer her.

Her heart had stopped beating.

I brushed a kiss to her lips.

I turned to Lisa. "I'm going to kill you," I whispered, my voice low and threatening. "I will kill you and I'll see too it that you die in the most horrible way there is."

Just as quickly as saying the words, I turned back to Nora again.

"I failed you." A tear slid down my face and dripped onto the cement floor. "I've failed you." I slid my arms around her and shuddered horribly. "No!" I shouted. I pressed her against the cement floor again. "You are not dead. You are not dead." I tipped her chin back and breathed for her. "Nora -Nora, wake up, baby, wake up."

_Angel! _I shouted.

"Angel," my voice broke. "Angel..."

She jerked forward and began to cough.

Water pooled on the cement floor but she was alive and breathing again.

"Angel."

She was in my arms and I felt her trembling in my arms. I kissed her cheek and smoothed her hair and wrapped my arms strong and surely around her.

"Patch," she sobbed into my chest. "Patch. Patch. Patch."

"You're okay," I whispered against her skin, my cheek pressed to hers. "We're going to be okay."

Lisa moved toward us. "Want to keep her?" A snide smile spread across her lips.

"I'll kill you," I said, pulling Nora so close and so tight that there were red marks on her arms where I touched. "I'll kill you." Nora wrapped her arms around me and pressed her cheek into my shoulder.

Lisa laughed. "Hardly. Keep her while you can." She stopped and looked at me. "She has hypothermia. You should probably do something about that." Then she turned away and left us there.

"Oh, Angel, I'm so sorry. I should have gotten you out sooner." I choked on the words and tears threatened to fall. "I failed you angel. I failed you and I am so sorry. I love you. I never meant-" But she silenced me by pressing a finger to my lips.

She shook her head. "You didn't fail me, Patch. I love you," she murmured.

"But I-"

"I love you," she repeated, nuzzling her face into the curve of my neck and letting her lips slide across my skin. "I. Love. You."


	6. Chapter 6

_**Nora**_

When Lisa came, I was asleep in Patch's arms as we lay on the cement flooring -keeping me warm and feeling safe. But as soon as we felt the presence of the nephilim there, my eyes were wide open.

Patch pressed me against him, holding on tightly. He wasn't going to let me go or say goodbye. I knew as much and I knew that if I had to choose between dying or never seeing Patch again -death was preferable.

I loved him and I was never going to say goodbye.

"What do you want Lisa?" I demanded. My voice was frailer than usual. I could see the satisfaction rolling off of her in waves.

My finger gripped Patch's tightly and he held me there with the same unyielding intensity.

"I've become curious about the two of you. I want to test on a fallen angel and the depth of their emotions. I want to see what makes them tick and Nora...I want to see what you can withstand so that we can make your boyfriend cooperate."

There was something altogether, just plain frightening about what she was saying. She wanted to use me to torture Patch. She hated him beyond a depth that I could understand and she was completely insane.

Shaking his head, Patch stepped in front of me, still gripping my hand and shielding me from my enemies. "You touch her, you die. Do you understand me? I will kill you. I will destroy you. I will kill you and you will rot in-" He was threatening her. I knew that he could and probably would follow through with all of these threats. He was dead serious.

But Lisa only laughed. "You're not going to kill me. We'll be back for her in the morning but we can't be sure that you will be-"

"You-" Patch began.

I could hardly comprehend what had just happened.

I saw thee nephilim in the corner of my eye with the iron rod in his hands and when I came to realize what was happening -I was too late.

Patch let out a gasping sound as the rod was plunged into his wing scars.

I screamed in horror as he fell against me and I caught him before he fell.

"Patch! Patch!" I cried out his name but he had gone completely still and his skin was feverishly hot.

"He won't wake up for a couple of hours," Lisa said grimly. "I hope you don't mind."

As soon as Lisa left, I began the laborious task of pulling the iron rod from his wing scars. I prayed that he couldn't feel the pain. I wasn't sure, now that he could feel me. My hands were clammy as I pulled the rod from the bade of his skin.

When the rod was finally out, his shirt was ripped beyond repair and he was lying there shirtless.

The next couple hours were spent brushing butterfly kisses over up the side of his face and tangling my fingers in his curls.

Patch stirred and I whispered softly, "Patch?"

_Angel?_

He reached for my hand and gripped it and I let out an appreciative sob. He was going to be okay.

Patch's head was cradled in my arms and I was holding him, leaning up against me.

_Angel?_ He whispered the word to my mind again.

_I love you Patch. I love you so much._

His fingers tightened on mine. "Nora-" he began, forcing himself awake and I pressed my fingers to his mouth. "Shh...It's okay." And then his hands were on me. Checking my head and my arms and everywhere -making sure that I was okay. "Did they hurt you? Are you hurt anywhere?"

"Patch-"

"I'll kill her," he said softly, his voice was predatory and more than a little bit frightening. "I'll kill them."

I was about to tell him not to worry but then I noticed we weren't alone.

Lisa Martin was coming toward us.

"The girl," Lisa ordered.

Patch rose. "You're not touching her." There was something of a threat behind the words.

"That's where you're wrong, angel," she said with a growl in her voice and a vengeance in her eyes.

He shouted my name over and over again, as I shouted his.

They were mangled and strewn by the time they managed to pull me away from him.

We fought...

and we lost.

I heard the sound of a door knob turning and too soon had hope that it was Patch, who had come to rescue me.

It was not.

"Lisa," I said the one word coldly, as if she were the dirt on my cashmere sweater. Hated her for keeping me away from Patch and I hated her for drowning me in that tank. But she held only amusement in her eyes when she saw me.

"We're moving you, Nora. You're causing problems with that boy of yours right now." I hate her. I hate her. I hate her... "Oh, don't look so glum, you do have forever, you know. I might be kinder in a year from now and let the two of you chat on the phone. Who knows."

"No," I said. "You can't do this!" In truth the words were only a whisper. I was too broken to care about sounding weak.

Lisa flicked her eyes at me. "I can do whatever I want."


End file.
